The whole place went up in flames. One Molotov cocktail is all it takes, but three does the job quicker. “They’ll be scrambling, for sure,” Gabe says with a giant smile. We get back to safety, but it’s not over for me just yet.

“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” I say. “Let’s go to my auto shop. Let’s burn that down too.”

“You cheeky bastard,” he smiles.

Here we are, a pair of brothers, bonding over the burning of buildings. All it takes is a few Molotov cocktails to do it. Cop sirens ring out behind us. 10^th street. It’ll take them longer to show up. The cops know not to investigate too hard over here.

“It’s just around this block,” I say. “It’s right over—”

I stop speaking when I’m in front of the store. Memories flood back to me, both good and bad. This was mine. It was all mine. And now what do I have to my name? About five-hundred bucks? Less? Shit, I’ve got nothing, but I do have Emma, and she’s priceless to me.

Gabe puts his arms around my shoulder and sighs. “This is it, brother,” he says. “You ready?”

Cop sirens are getting closer. I have to be ready. I nod my head solemnly. “This was mine,” I say. “It’s only right to destroy it myself.”

“Set it on fire,” he smiles.

I grab the bottle and light the towel stuck in the end of it. I throw the bottle and it’s like everything is moving in slow motion. We are the champions of the world… Right before the whole place bursts into flames, a big smile forms on my face. “Michael, buddy. I’m sorry for everything,” I whisper. “Rest in peace.”

I turn my back and the whole place explodes. I mean, it really explodes. The bottles of gasoline, cars, rubber, blow up like a fucking a-bomb. We jump and duck behind a bus stop, luckily getting out of the way before we’re incinerated.

“Holy shit!” Gabe screams. We both start laughing wildly. “You did it, man.”

“We did it,” I laugh. “Come on. Let’s get the hell out of here. I don’t want to make the news headlines.”

“Right,” he says, following me toward the hotel. Just a mile away and we’ll be safe. We’ll pay for the room, get the fuck out of Buffalo, and I’ll be back home.

* * *

Just another ten miles and we’re home. Another ten miles and I’m back in Emma’s arms. Another ten miles and… fuck, this isn’t over. I’m still going to be on my guard because who the hell knows where the Good Boys are lurking. Hell, I don’t even remember what they look like. White, shaved heads, tattooed, and tough. They look like, well, me.

“We have to be careful,” I tell Gabe. “They’re here. The old man told us enough.”

“And they know who I am. Am I a target now?” he asks.

I nod. “What do you think? You just helped burn down some of their highest earning establishments,” I laugh.

“What? They don’t have insurance?” he says, with a smile.

When we pull over near my place, it’s quiet, but I know that we’re both thinking the same thing. We need to come up with some sort of plan. Anything to stay safe. “What’re we going to do?” he asks. “We should stick together.”

“Wait here,” I tell him. “Let me talk to Emma.

“Will do,” he says.

“Turn something on the radio. This could be a while,” I say, tapping the car as I step out.

I run over to Emma’s place. This isn’t going to be good, of course. I’m about to get the screaming of my life and I deserve it too. I’m willing to get yelled at if it means I get to end up with her in the end. I’m willing to do anything for her.

When I knock on her door, I take a deep breath and brace for the harsh words that are sure to come my way. “Here you go, you bastard!” I hear her yell behind the door. The door swings open and a glass connects directly against my head. Before I can even think, I’m on the floor, dizzy as hell and in a ton of pain. Blood drops down my face. I collapse against the porch.

“Fuck,” I groan.

“Oh my god! Soren!” Emma screams. “I thought you were—I… oh, fuck.”

After a few seconds, I manage to look up at her in disbelief. “What the fuck, Emma?” I ask. “Is this how you greet me now?”

“Get inside, quick,” she says, running to the kitchen. She grabs an icepack and a warm washcloth and tends to my wounds, as I stumble inside.

“What’s the problem here?” I ask her. “I know you’re pissed at me for going to Buffalo, but you’re really going to hit me with a bottle?”

“I didn’t think it would be you,” she sighs. “Fuck, I’m so sorry.”

“I’m sorry too,” I groan. “I should have told you straight up that I was going back home with Gabe. I just didn’t want to frighten you any more than I did.”

“You just wanted to avoid the argument,” she says. “But you’re going to have to face me now.”

“I think I just did,” I feel my head. It’s wet with blood and the flesh has risen a bit. Nothing a good night’s sleep won’t take care of, but it does hurt.

“What the fuck did you do over there, Soren? Tell me. Tell me everything,” she says, still pretty fucking pissed at me.

“Gabe and I got a tip from an old shop keep, who lost his wife to those bastards down in Buffalo. He said we needed to meet with him to get some information,” I tell her. “He was a plant. It was a trap. We ran and, luckily, we got away. But we got some mild revenge in the process of running.”

I want to smile, but I know this isn’t the place for that. She’s concerned. She’s scared. She’s angry with me for leaving her all alone. It’s all justified, of course. I’m a piece of shit, but it’s only because I need to get them off my back for good.

“What did you do, Soren? Tell me,” she says. She can barely even look at me. She’s shaking with that womanly rage. It’s much scarier than a man’s rage. You never know what the hell is going to happen to you, but you’ll come out of it emotionally scarred.

“We burned their main apartment building down. Then, we burned my old shop down. We left right after that,” I tell her. It’s the honest truth, at least. Can’t beat honesty, right?

“You what?” she screams the question. “You burned down an apartment building? What the fuck, Soren!”

Well, I guess you can beat honesty. I guess I should have kept the whole truth in and dealt with it later. No, this was the right decision. I’m used to dealing with the fallout. That’s pretty much been my life since day one.

“No one got hurt,” I assure her. “They need to pay for what they’ve done.”

She’s exhausted by her anger, which is a good sign for me. When she takes another deep breath, I realize I’m almost in the clear for now. “Look, last night I heard something,” she says. “A glass fell over in the kitchen. When I came out, the front door was wide open. At first, I thought maybe it was the wind or something, but then, I went outside to check and I saw a man dressed in black, running away. I’m scared, Soren. This is not good.”

I reach out to grab her hand. I need to protect her. She’s my only source of happiness now. She’s the only thing keeping me going. “Then they’re here already,” I say. “I had a feeling. I should have never left.”

“That’s right, you asshole,” she says. “It was a terrible idea to ever get involved with a man like you.”

There it is. She’s dropped a bomb on me. I’m a terrible idea. “I promise you,” I tell her, “that when this all over, I’ll make it up to you. I love you, Emma. I’ve never loved anyone in my life.”

“Bullshit,” she whispers. “It’s all bullshit, isn’t it? Everything you say? You loved Julia once in your life. You’ll love again.”

“What’re you saying?” I ask.

“I’m saying, I’m not sure this is such a good idea,” she says, looking away.

“I was with Julia when I was a child. It meant nothing. You’re the only love I’ll ever have. I can’t lose you,” I tell her. “What do you want from me? Do you want me to get on my knees and beg? Because I’ll do that if I have to. I’ll do anything.” I drop to my knees. Me, the man of muscle and dark strength. She immediately motions for me to get up.

“Get up. We’ll talk about this love business later,” she says. “I have a ton of reading to get done.”

“We need to go,” I tell her. “I’m here because Gabe is outside. We’re going to his place. We need to be somewhere that’s safer than here.”

“Fuck me,” she sighs to herself. “Fine. I’ll grab my things. Let’s go.”

It’s not exactly the warm welcome home that I was expecting, although I guess I’ve pretty much ruined our little honeymoon.

“Wait,” I say. She stops dead in her tracks.

“I’m sorry for everything, Emma. I’ve been counting the minutes until I could get back to you. I’ve ruined everything.”

“Soren…” she trails off.

I grab her and pull her close to me. “I know you love me too. I can see it in your eyes,” I tell her. “Never again will something like this happen. This is the finality of all this bullshit. I promise you that, from the bottom of my heart.”

She closes her eyes. Everything slows down, like it did back in Buffalo. Time is a funny thing. In a split second, you can remember everything that’s happened. I think about everything that we’ve been through, just to keep this surviving. We want this to work. We love each other, dammit.

Our lips meet and a burst of light forms over us. At least, that’s how it feels. Our lips pursue each other, as if we’ve been waiting for this for years. I know I’ve been dreaming about it. Feeling her near me nearly brings tears to my eyes, dammit. She pulls back and looks at me. Her eyes are glossy, pure, and beautiful. They reflect against the sunlight pouring through the windows.

“I love you,” she says. “I just don’t want to hurt anymore. I don’t want to be scared. Promise me that this is almost over.”

She rests her head against my chest. God, I love it when she does that. “I promise you,” I say. “I’m going to do everything I can to make this work. I only want you, Emma.”

“I only want you too, Soren,” she whispers.

Outside, the car honks loudly. “We should go,” she says, patting my chest. I smile. Things are at their lowest, but they’re also, strangely enough, at their highest. I just hope I can keep my promise to her. If I fail, my life is over.